the christian left

I received my copy of the Veganomicon from the authors of Vegan With a Vengeance and Cupcakes.  I preordered and it arrived EARLY.  This may have never, ever happened to me before, so I am so thrilled.  Also, it is truly the largest vegan cookbook I have ever seen.  It’s like a plaid cookbook for vegans!  So, on with the testing!

May I introduce the black bean burger.  And may I say that it was a phenomenal hit.  The little boy didn’t approve, but what does he know?  He eats stuff off the floor and wears diapers.  The  rest of us, though, thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated it.  The recipe  is easy — it makes 6 burgers, and they are loaded with protein and fiber.  They do require oil for cooking, and I found that it takes a bit of oil to make it work, but it was worth it.  These are not grill-able as they are a little on the delicate side.  You won’t notice it when you’re eating it — you’ll be thankful it isn’t the usual hockey puck that you get at cookouts.  You know what I mean.  Seems like there are two types of veg burger styles at cookouts (of people who are not also veggie) — hockey puck (tough, rubbery, overdone) and “warmed up” (the people that think since there is no meat involved that cooking is also optional as there is no threat of disease).  But, I digress.  This was my first foray into the recipes, and I will let you know as it continues…

On a lighter note, the weekend was packed with fun.  Unfortunately, I have no good photos of my Halloween costume (Alice in Wonderland) but there are a couple of B dressed up as Mark Borchardt from American Movie.  Pretty good stuff.  Then we took the girl to see Dracula at the Belcourt.  It was a play, her first play, and she loved it despite some rather cheesy moments.  It was good fun to have her out for some special attention from us.  Usually we’re dividing our attentions, and it was a treat to have her as an only child.  The boy went to the zoo, so he wasn’t missing us at all…

We are getting ready for the Wednesday festivities.  Come trick or treat chez nous — we  have play doh.  Yeah, that’s right!  Oh, and I’ll probably make cookies, too.

Apparently, I should have been a gnocchi  chef.  I have never made it before, and I have only eaten it a few times at Italian restaurants.  I have read a lot of recipes today, and they all offer consolation for first-timers who fail at it and encourage them to keep trying.  Especially if they go eggless.  WELL, I went eggless, and it turned out.  First time in a long time something new hasn’t flopped.

I threw together a quick tomato sauce and teamed it with the gnocchi.  I plan on cooking up some  basic veggies to go with and leaving it at that.  It takes a long time and a lot of effort to make this pasta/dumpling.  SO if someone makes it for you, know it was a gift of time and energy.

More eye candy below with the raw gnocchi.  Oh, and hopefully I will have some pics of my Central Park Hoodie to show eventually — I’m still working diligently on the hood!

Yes, friends, that is indeed Cinderella’s castle.  And it was as impressive as I remember it from when I was a kid.  I can’t really describe how much I enjoyed getting to relive the adventures of my childhood with my own kids at Disney.  I was not in company with this, as I do understand that there is a lot of walking, a lot of waiting, and craptastic food (I cannot suffer that!)  But I do love Disney as corporate sellout as it is.  I just love  it.  Just look how much I love it.

I was dripping with joy.  And sweat — it was mega hot and unseasonably warm for October.  Go figure. 

I should have some better pics if you want to see any.  Except for the few where apparently my face was plastered onto a fat chick’s body.  Those  must hit the trash.  Seriously — I had no clue it had gotten this bad.  But, I digress.

Also, I was not aware that you can wear whatever you like on vacation.  Including a tube top without a bra.  It was the standard attire for the women at SeaWorld, so I will plan more accordingly next time I go.

Please excuse the less than prolific post.  It’s just good to be home after the long drive.  It’s good to eat home cooking again — I had really missed my kitchen.  Nothing too exciting tonight for dinner — just some lentil and barley soup with some simple salads with vinaigrette.  I had a couple goat cheese toast points with mine and B had some nondairy toast with his.  Not fancy at all, but delicious, healthy, and home cooked.  There’s just something wonderful about eating at home that can’t be pinpointed until after a trip for a long time.  Sure, I love to eat at restaurants (heck, if you look at my photos you’d think all I do is eat — really!) but eating at home is true joy.   Quality control is undoubtedly better and the seasonings are customized.  And tonight it tasted great to eat at home.  And it is nice to be back in TN.  Because it’s home.

Well, we are here at Disney World doing the vacation thing.  The kids are overwhelmed with delight, as am I.  I do enjoy some Disney World.  I don’t really mind the hassle — I like the walking, I like the rides.  About the only things I don’t enjoy are the food and the prices.  Even the most devout Disney lovers agree there.

So, I was thinking as we rode the it’s a small world ride that you, dear readers, may be “jonesin” for some food posts.  I can honestly admit that I have neither eaten nor prepared anything interesting enough to make a post, but I did run into some food today.  SO, I can happily post this knowing that you will both appreciate a slice of vacation and a food-honored picture. 

See you when we get home.

We must discuss last night’s dinner.  (First pause for a moment of silence.)

Philly Cheeze Seitan, Nashville style.  My recipe.  I used the Chicago Diner seitan recipe and made the rest using my own personal resources.  Seriously, it looks like what it is.  And it was delicious.  There is little more I can say — if you want the recipe, let me know and I’ll post it.  I’d just be taking a stab at quantities, but it’d  be ok.

Moving quickly along…

This is why we love the CSA.  The only foods on the plate not from the CSA are the broccoli and the corn muffin (that I made from the Chicago Diner recipe — I thought they were just ok but everyone else  liked them.)  I just mashed the sweet potatoes and fried the eggplant slices, pressure cooked the green beans, and  made a cucumber salad.  Just like down home.

Then we have  the cake that I made for the MIL birthday.  Chocolate with fudge frosting and a chocolate glaze.  Not vegan, but it was outstanding.

And these  were the baby girl’s reward cookies.  She gets a reward of sorts each Sunday if she does her chores and is obedient during the week.  Her desire was to make chocolate chip cookies with me, and so that’s precisely what we did.  I could never say no to that request.

So that’s what’s been cookin’ over here.  Come over and I’ll cook for you.

In fitness news, I ran outside today in the most amazing of weather.  I didn’t run into any other runners, so I was able to avoid feeling lapped by everyone.  I ran farther and faster.  I didn’t sweat my earbuds out.  I had a dedicated playlist.  And  it rocked.  Had I not had commitments, I would have been able to hit it for twice as long.  And that feels great.

Enjoy the weather!

Sometimes I am too focused on numbers.  How many numbers + unit(s) I weigh, how many times I ate, how many times I left the house, how many calories I burned, how much my heart rate was, how many miles I went, etc.  We could all use fewer numbers.  Counting calories sucks and so does getting on the scale.  I think I am going to quit doing those things for a while.  Don’t get me wrong — I am not going to binge eat and start wearing maternity pants again despite not being pregnant.  I just need a hiatus from the numbers that get me down.

On the other hand, there are numbers that you need to know.  Like my heart rate.  I want to be able to gauge myself during exercise so I don’t hurt myself and to make sure I’m working hard enough.  Although, I am really getting good at knowing how my body feels at a particular level.  I know my body pretty well and we have always been in sync pretty well, so that is nice.  Still an important number.

Today I did a really mathy thing that I have not allowed myself to do for a while.  I drove my running route in our neighborhood and clocked the distance.  And I was pleasantly surprised.  All this time, I knew running outside was harder than the treadmill, but I was unaware that I had been traveling a good distance  at a better pace than indoors.  I can simply up my distance over the next three weeks, hopefully not too painfully, and I will be where I need to be.  Sure, the time may not be awesome, but it isn’t going to be as bad as I had thought.  Unless I just have a bad day like I did  on Saturday.  And we’re going to make sure that doesn’t happen.

Today is a lifting day.  Since I ran in the morning yesterday and took a really long walk while pushing both kids in the stroller last night, I am going to shy from the cardio.  And shoot to get up early tomorrow and take the iPod for its regular tour of the  neighborhood.  I like getting to run past the “spider house” because it’s cool looking.  Yeah, I love Halloween.

I still can’t believe that I had been traveling as far as I have.  I’m going to make it.  I know I can count on that.  Maybe in a few years I’ll be marathon good.  Who knows?  Maybe I’ll laugh at this time the way I laugh at not understanding demonstrative pronouns in French for about two months or the way I laugh at my first knitted items or some other novice such.

Man, I have been slackin.  I have cooked some interesting things, I have knitted a bunch, I have been getting in my exercise.  So, no lack of text, just lack of discipline to get over here and type it up.  I’ll post some pics later of beautiful food, mostly dessert.

But here’s what’s on the mind this morning.  I did a good thing.  Really.  I got an iPod (one of those new-fangled nanos) and loaded it up with some songs and took it out for a run this morning.  I ran with a friend on Saturday, and it was just ok.  I knew I slowed her down, like a lot, and that was sad for me.  I had a really hard time running without any food in my system and I was extremely tired.  Probably just the day.  I had stayed up late and had eaten a pretty big dinner at PF Chang’s the night before.  I wasn’t able to make it through a run anywhere close to what I can do inside on my treadmill at way more incline than we experienced.  WHY IS THAT?  Anyway, this morning I decided to revisit the concept of hitting the street while it’s still cool and nice outside and before the kids are up and before I eat.  The iPod made it way more bearable.  I still can’t do my 35 minutes of running without a break when I’m outside, but I got my time in.  At least.  If my legs aren’t too shell shocked (why is the road so much tougher on them?) I’ll do my intervals on the treadmill tomorrow.  I’m trying to temper myself for the 5k.  How do you get your mind right?  I know it isn’t right, but how do I get it there?  I should feel liberated and free that I leave my house and run away from all the stuff I have to do there.  Literally.  But I am more relaxed and comfortable  on the treadmill.  Maybe I know there isn’t anyone behind me trying not to watch my shake.  I don’t know.

But the rock helped.  And I came home and whilst still listening did my squats, lunges, etc.  And then I ate a nice breakfast with the kids.  Oh, and yeah, I showered.  It’s a pretty amazing device, you know — I had really thought iPods for college  kids or high school kids or people not like me.  But I do love it.  I do wonder how you keep your earbuds in when you’re really sweaty.  Maybe I really am a freak of nature.  Who knows?  Or maybe it’s my stupid midlife crisis.  Hopefully it’ll take me through the pitiful 3.1 miles I need it to.

Another digression — how unfair is it that I do not have “natural ability” in athletics?  I was a good student, I have never really had to struggle in an extreme capacity to succeed.  Sure, I have had  to work hard and clock my time and make sure I am prepared, but never have I felt like something was SO much bigger than me.  And I have never worked for less than the best.  And all I am doing is holding on and hoping I can stick with it.  I got lapped  by a pregnant woman today.  How did I know she was pregnant?  Well, she looked about 8.5 months.  Is that supposed to make me feel good or bad?   Because it made me a little angry.  Oh, well, take a look at what I have!